Who is favored in Kansas Jayhawks at Utah Utes?

Utah Utes are favored on the moneyline.

Kansas Jayhawks at Utah Utes

·Oct 10, 2026·9:15 PM CT·ESPN·Salt Lake City, UT

By JR·2 min read

Kansas(2-2)

#12 Utah(4-0)

9:15 PM

TLDR: Utah is 4-0, No. 13 in the AP poll, and has had 2 weeks to get ready for this one. Kansas comes to Rice-Eccles with its third quarterback and a running back room that injuries have stripped down.

Week 6 · 10/10, SAT OCT 10, 9:15 PM CT ESPN

Kansas

(2-2)

WLLW

#12 Utah

(4-0)

WWWW

Kickoff77°16 mph

No. 13 Utah (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) is coming off a bye and hosts Kansas (2-2, 0-1) in a whiteout at Rice-Eccles. The Utes' defense has allowed 41 points all season, while Kansas is down to its third quarterback, Isaiah Marshall, and has lost 3 running backs for the year. The Jayhawks' 2 blowout wins came against overmatched opponents. Their 2 losses came against the only Power 4 teams they've played, and this is their first road trip.

Kansas Jayhawks

Defense pitched a 55-0 shutout of Middle Tennessee
Stayed within a touchdown of Arizona State
Ballard and Mason both out; Marshall starting
3 running backs lost for the season
First road game, at altitude, in a whiteout

Utah Utes

Allowed 41 points across 4 games
Coming off a bye with 2 weeks to prepare
Clean injury report
Only 1 road test so far, at Iowa State
Iowa State kept it to a 2-score game

Start at quarterback, because that's where Kansas's season has gone sideways. C. Ballard is out with a shoulder injury and no timetable to return, and J. Mason has been out since before the Arizona State game. That leaves Isaiah Marshall running the offense, and against Middle Tennessee he went a modest 13-for-22 for 161 yards and a touchdown. Kansas still won that game 55-0, which tells you most of the work happened on the ground and on defense. A Big 12 road night in Salt Lake City asks a lot more of him.

Next comes the running game, which is where things get grim for the Jayhawks. K. Amachree, Y. Willis and J. Thurman are all listed as out, and all 3 are expected to miss the rest of the season. That's a lot of carries to replace in one year, and it's happening while the starting quarterback is also hurt. Utah's injury report, for comparison, is empty.

The calendar works for Utah too. The Utes beat Iowa State 31-17 in Ames to open Big 12 play and then had their bye week, so they get a full 2 weeks to prepare. Kansas played Middle Tennessee on October 3 and gets the usual week before flying west for a Saturday night game at altitude. Utah has already announced a whiteout for this one, so expect a loud, packed crowd.

Look at the Utes' scores and the defense stands out. Utah has allowed 41 points in 4 games, shut out Utah State 33-0 and held Arkansas, an SEC team, to 10. The offense hasn't been sitting around either, putting up 66 on Idaho and 43 on the Razorbacks. This is the first season after Kyle Whittingham, with Morgan Scalley now head coach, and so far you'd barely notice the change.

Kansas's record is harder to read. The 2 wins were blowouts of Long Island and Middle Tennessee by a combined 106-6. The 2 losses came against the only real opponents on the schedule, Missouri (38-21) and Arizona State (24-17), and both were at home. The Arizona State loss was close enough to show this team can compete with a Big 12 opponent. The Missouri loss showed what happens when it can't. This is Kansas's first road game of the season, and it's against the best team it has faced.

Kansas's way to win is short and difficult: keep it close with the defense, get clean, mistake-free football from Marshall, and find a back who can take some of the load. Utah's way to win is the same thing it has done for 4 weeks. The Jayhawks are already 0-1 in conference, so a second loss would make the league race a long climb. For Utah, this is the next step on a schedule that gets much tougher from here.

Kansas Jayhawks at Utah Utes

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